PHNOM PENH: Six months after moving from makeshift homes along the Pursat River to a newly developed residential area, some relocated families say they feel safer from flooding, riverbank erosion and uncertainty over land ownership.
However, they now face a different challenge: Declining sales and limited opportunities to earn enough to support their families.
At the new settlement in Boeung Yea village, Veal commune, Kandieng district, families have been allocated residential plots with road access, water and electricity.
Yet some have not moved in, leaving those already settled struggling to make a living in a community with far less commercial activity than their former neighbourhoods.
Ek Sophon, one of the relocated residents, told The Post that her family previously lived on land without formal ownership documents beside the river, where flooding, bank erosion and the possibility of eviction were constant concerns.
“We were living on land without a title, so we were always worried. We never knew when the authorities might ask us to leave,” she said.
Sophon said relocating had brought her greater peace of mind.
“I am happier living here, and I feel more at ease than before. I no longer have to worry about flooding or being forced to leave,” she said.
Her new plot measures five metres by 20 metres, or 100 square metres, and was allocated through a lottery system. She said the authorities had helped prepare the land and provided some materials to support the relocation.
Although she has not yet received a formal land title, Sophon hopes the new property will offer greater security for her children and future generations.
The move has also improved living conditions for her child, who lives with a disability.
At the riverside settlement, rising water made mobility and daily care difficult. At the new location, the firmer ground and road access make it easier for her child to move around in a wheelchair.
However, improved physical safety has not translated into better economic circumstances.
Sophon said her family still relies on small-scale trading, but customers are scarce because relatively few households have moved into the new settlement and it is far from busy commercial areas.
“The place is isolated, so it is a little difficult. Sales are very slow. I am old now and cannot go out looking for other work or travel to the market. Finding customers is the hardest part,” she said.
She acknowledged that the settlement has water and electricity, but said there is no school or hospital within the community.
“We have water and electricity, but the main problem is that we cannot sell much because there are not enough people here,” she said.
For another resident, Thorn Theary, the struggle is even more immediate.
A widowed mother of four daughters who also cares for several young grandchildren, Theary said she moved to the settlement about six months ago but continues to face severe financial difficulties.
At her former home, she earned money selling sugarcane juice and other drinks. Since relocating, she has lacked the capital to restart the business and now relies on growing small amounts of vegetables.
“Before, I could sell sugarcane juice and other drinks. Now I have no capital and nothing to earn money from. All I can do is grow some crops,” she told The Post.
Theary said caring for her grandchildren has made daily survival increasingly difficult, particularly as her daughters are unable to help regularly.
She described some days when the children had little more than rice and soy sauce to eat.
“I have to take them to school, look after the house, and sometimes there is nothing to eat. Rice with soy sauce. It is very difficult, and I do not know what to do,” she said.
Commune chief Sin Sophea explained that the relocation project moved residents away from makeshift structures along the Pursat River, some of which were in poor condition or exposed to risks, while allowing the authorities to redevelop the riverfront.
He explained that the new settlement was initially established on former rice fields, including 3.75 hectares of state land. The provincial administration subsequently acquired additional land, bringing the total to more than 10 hectares.
“The provincial governor considers relocating residents the first step towards developing the riverfront,” Sophea said.
He noted that nearly 200 families have been registered for receive residential plots, although not all of them have moved into the new settlement.
Families without alternative accommodation generally relocated first, while others are temporarily staying with relatives after leaving their former riverside homes.
Sophea said the local authorities were continuing to organise the settlement, maintain security and encourage sanitation, while acknowledging that development remained incomplete.
“At present, my responsibility is to maintain order and ensure their security because everything is not yet fully completed. We want them to live in a clean, hygienic and peaceful environment,” he added.
Pursat governor Khoy Rida previously told journalists that relocating residents from the riverbank was among the province’s most challenging tasks in its efforts to improve urban order and the appearance of the provincial town.
He described the process of negotiating with riverside residents and reorganising the area as a significant undertaking.
“I consider the resolution of the riverside settlement issue a historic achievement,” he said.
Rida emphasised that improving public order should involve explaining the reasons for relocation and negotiating with residents rather than relying on coercive measures.
“We explain the reasons to them and then make the necessary arrangements,” he said.
For Theary, however, securing a new place to live has yet to resolve the immediate struggle to feed her grandchildren. Sophon, meanwhile, is waiting for more families to move into the settlement, hoping that increased activity will revive her small business.
Despite the present difficulties, Sophon remains optimistic that the new property will provide a more secure future for her family.
“I hope to have a stable future here, especially for the next generation of my family,” she said.
For families beginning again on newly allocated land, long-term security will depend not only on having a safer place to live, but also on being able to earn a sustainable living. - The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
